Bitcoin’s PR Problem; Is Regulation The Way To Restore Confidence?

By Teresa Rivas

Bitcoin is in the news again, from the Chicago Sun Times becoming the first major U.S. newspaper to allow subscribers to pay with the virtual currency to the closure of one of China’s biggest exchanges in response to pressure from that nation’s central bank.

As The New York Timeswrote earlier this week, Bitcoin is struggling with an image issue, as backers scramble to make it look safe and reliable after a series of high profile issues halved its value in recent months.

But even insiders are starting to feel their confidence shaken as ongoing legal investigations widen their net. As The Wall Street Journalreports, “some of [Bitcoin’s] staunchest defenders have been swept into the investigation, and the job of promoting bitcoin has turned into a crisis-management slog.”

This of course creates uncomfortable questions for Bitcoin, as even people well versed in this universe are at a loss to explain some of the recent high-profile problems. It also begs the question of whether Bitcoin insiders should agitate for more regulation, as a means of preventing future issues and lending an air of stability and legitimacy to the currency, despite the laissez-faire ethos trumpeted by many in the industry.

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Chris Dieterich has covered the U.S. stock market for The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires. He is a graduate of Regis University and the Missouri School of Journalism.